


Two Men, a Dog, and a Tony

by arianapeterson19



Series: Avengers Shorts [27]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Author Is Sleep Deprived, Cat Tony, Clint Is a Good Bro, Dog Clint Barton, Implied animal abuse, Insecure Tony, M/M, Protective Bucky Barnes, Steve adopts everything, Thunder and Lightning, Thunderstorms, Tony Feels, Tony Stark Feels, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-13
Updated: 2016-02-13
Packaged: 2018-05-20 02:49:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,275
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5989432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arianapeterson19/pseuds/arianapeterson19
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Steve had suggested getting another dog Bucky just knew it wasn't going to be that simple. It was never that simple with Steve. Sure enough, as soon as the shelter worker opened his mouth, Bucky knew they were doomed.</p><p>OR</p><p>The one where Bucky and Steve agree on adopting another dog but end up with a Tony.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Two Men, a Dog, and a Tony

Bucky was certain that they would have gone home from the animal shelter with a different animal had the worker not told Steve that he wouldn’t want the scrawny black cat that hissed at everyone from his corner. Steve hadn’t even been interested in getting a cat – they had come with the intention of adopting another dog – but when the worker had told Steve that no one wanted Tony, the cat was too difficult and came from a rough home so he would never trust humans again, Bucky just knew they would be leaving with the hiss fur ball of fury instead of the dog they had planned on.

The entire ride home Steve sat with the small carrier cage on his lap, ignoring the odd looks he received from the other bus patrons every time the cat hissed – which was frequently. Bucky kept thinking about how their dog would react to the cat. They knew Clint was sociable with other dogs but they had never seen him interact with a cat before and this cat wasn’t exactly a cakewalk. 

“So how are we going to do this?” asked Bucky when they were standing outside their apartment door and could no longer put off the conversation. 

“I think we should just set Tony’s carrier on the counter out of reach and let him decide when to come out,” said Steve.

“Steve,” sighed Bucky.

“I know,” said Steve, gripping Bucky’s arm. “I’m sorry, but I couldn’t leave him there.”

“I know, I know,” said Bucky, rolling his eyes. “He needs us. I get it.”

Steve opened the apartment door and entered. Clint, their overgrown puppy of a dog bounded up to them, not barking but whining happily, licking every inch of his owners he could reach and rubbing against them in greeting. 

“Hey buddy,” said Bucky, getting down and letting Clint lick all over his face. “Did you miss us?”

“We got you a friend,” said Steve, setting the carrier on the counter and opening the door.

Inside the carrier, Tony hissed. Clint sniffed around, peered up at the counter, then followed Steve to the corner by the washing machine where his food bowl was kept, knowing he was about to get fed. Bucky started making dinner for him and Steve, humming absently to himself while he worked. Tony stuck his head out of the carrier cautiously, peering at his surroundings before once again ducking back inside the dark carrier. He did it a few more times before setting even a paw outside of his comfort zone. Bucky grinned at the cat’s antics but made sure to ignore the little demon so he didn’t scare it off.

Tony had finally decided to venture out when Clint came running back in, followed by Steve who held a leash in one hand. Tony scrambled back into his carrier at the sight.

“I’m taking Clint on a walk,” said Steve.

“I’m staying here and finishing the pizza,” replied Bucky gruffly. “Don’t scare the cat.”

But Steve was gone.

Ten minutes later Tony had finally come back out of the carrier. Bucky was sitting at the table reading while he waited for the pizza to finish. Tony hopped from the counter to the table with little grace then approached Bucky slowly as though he was stalking prey. Bucky pretended not to notice until Tony was right at the book and began chewing on the corner.

“If you’re hungry I can get you something to eat,” said Bucky mildly.

Tony froze. Bucky held out a hand, not moving the book out of reach, and waited for the cat to decide what he wanted to do. Tony sniffed the hand imperiously and then touched his nose to the tip of Bucky’s finger. As Bucky reached out to pet him, however, the door flew open and Steve and Clint came back, shattering the silence and carful atmosphere. Tony streaked off the table and wedged himself under the couch, settling in the back corner where nothing could reach him.

Clint crouched next to the couch and sniffed at Tony, who hissed at him in return. 

“Okay, you can’t just barge in here making all that noise anymore,” said Bucky, removing the pizza from the oven. “You scared your cat.”

“He’s our cat,” said Steve. “I didn’t mean to, I just opened the door.”

“Well do it softly next time. The little bastard just got out of a bad home, slamming doors open and such isn’t going to help him adjust.”

“Sorry,” said Steve sheepishly. “I got cat food, though. And a bed for him.”

Bucky rolled his eyes but smiled at Steve’s thoughtfulness.

It took three weeks for Tony to finally stop running away from everyone. He had warmed up to Clint quickly but hid from all humans unless they were absolutely still and pretended they didn’t see him. But after three weeks, Tony had deemed Bucky and Steve safe enough to remain in the room when they entered. If they had friends over – which the frequently did – then Tony would hide under the bed. Most of their friends were convinced that they made their new cat up.

When a thunderstorm hit in the middle of the night, Bucky was woken up by a small warm weight hitting his stomach.

“What the hell?” grumbled Bucky, lifting the blanket to see what had woken him from the sleep that had been peaceful.

Tony was curled into a trembling ball on his stomach, his tiny body practically vibrating with fear as another bout of thunder rolled outside. 

“You’re okay,” said Bucky, shifting Tony so the cat was curled on his chest instead of his stomach, soothing him with his large hands. “It’s just a storm, no need to freak out.”

“What’s going on?” yawned Steve, rolling over and blinking at Bucky. 

“Turns out the brat is scared of storms,” said Bucky. 

“Poor Tony,” said Steve, reaching out to pet the cat who hissed at him and jumped off of Bucky, streaking to Clint’s bed instead.

Clint woke up, sniffed at the cat who was doing his best to become one with his side, then curled more firmly around him, licked his black head, and went back to sleep. Bucky swatted Steve’s arm and turned over to sleep as well.

The next morning Tony refused to get out of Clint’s bed and when he finally did, he refused to go to let Clint out of his sight, following the dog around like a tiny shadow. Steve thought it was cute, Bucky thought it was strange, Clint seemed to quite enjoy his new best friend. Up until that point Tony had avoided Clint, staying out of reach of the dog. They didn’t fight but Tony wasn’t interested in knowing the dog and Clint had messes to make that didn’t involve Tony.

When Steve and Bucky got ready to leave, Tony whined and meowed his displeasure, twining around their ankles then back to Clint.

“I don’t think Tony wants us to go,” said Steve.

“It’s still raining,” said Bucky. “He doesn’t like the rain. Or water in general.”

Steve looked at Bucky with some sort of knowing grin, like he was in on some big secret about Bucky that Bucky wasn’t privy to just yet. Bucky ignored his punk of a best friend in favorite of petting the cat who was experiencing separation anxiety.

“We’re staying in today,” said Steve. 

Clint barked happily, bouncing around, licking every inch of Steve he could reach. Bucky picked Tony up and for once the cat nuzzled up to him, purring loudly and curling up on Bucky’s shoulder, the purring never pausing once.


End file.
